Editorial: Troubled restaurant gets one last chance

Amarillo public health officials are considering whether to reopen a troubled restaurant that has been plagued by salmonella outbreaks during the past several weeks.

This ought to be the last chance for the International House of Pancakes, on Western Street, just south of Interstate 40.

It's not that anyone should want to see a business fail, but the circumstances that have troubled the place involve the health of the public.

Hundreds of IHOP customers have been stricken with salmonella, a potentially fatal intestinal disorder. Public health authority for Potter and Randall counties Dr. Rush Pierce has blamed the outbreak on water used to heat syrup bottles.

Restaurant owners have been up front and remarkably candid about what has troubled the Western Street IHOP.

But sooner or later, enough ought to be enough.

The restaurant has changed the way it cleans the bottles. Let's hope that solves the problem. One more closure, though, should end this drama.